Cibelle's massive installation for Melissa Shoes

Cibelle has been asked by Melissa, the well-known Brazilian shoe brand, to collaborate on a special limited edition shoe called Sapato Azul ("Blue Shoe"), after Cibelle's song from her last album "Las Venus Resort Palace Hotel".
Cibelle has shot a wild video and prepared a huge installation for the Melissa art gallery in São Paulo, to be launched on October 19th in São Paulo!

The installation will give life to some of the imaginary "Products For A Better Life" created by Cibelle's doppelganger Sonja Khalecallon, in the parallel universe of the Las Venus Resort Palace Hotel…

"BENDA BILILI", the feature film about STAFF BENDA BILILI, out in cinemas now!

In France and several European countries!

After the amazing success encountered at the Cannes Film Festival, the film "BENDA BILILI", by Renaud Barret & Florent de la Tullaye, is officially released in France, the Netherlands, Switzerland and soon in Belgium and Greece.

So far, the media's response is fantastic!

UK and Germany will release the film in Spring 2011, when Staff Benda Bilili will be back on tour in Europe.

Staff Benda Bilili are catching a bit of rest with their families back in Kinshasa, and are getting ready for an extensive tour of Japan starting September 25th!

Each vinyl LP (180 gr) comes in an original sleeve, and an inner sleeve of a different colour, reproducing the Congotronics fabric which will be on the box (with a design resembling that of the fabrics used for dresses & robes in the Congo, based on the Congotronics logo).

This is a strictly limited pressing, orders will be fulfilled on a first come, first served basis.

Shantel rocks Montreux, delights Prince & Quincy Jones!

Exciting news from our man on the spot at Shantel's recent show at the Montreux Jazz Festival

Here's an eyewitness account from Jean Trouillet (Essay Recordings):

"Shantel and his Bucovina Club Orkestar rocked the Jazz Café at the Montreux Jazz Festival with an unbelievable late night show. The public was hot and chanting “Shantel Shantel” well before the show, when the organizer alerted us to the guests on the VIP balcony. I couldn’t believe my eyes: Prince and Quincy Jones – they stayed from the first until the very last minute and had great fun. Quincy turned up backstage after the show to tell how much he enjoyed this show and even spoke Serbian to some of the band. Both Prince and Quincy Jones requested CDs to take along..."

Could we see the princely purple one and the king of European pop on stage, or even on record together? Who knows...

Axel Krygier: a new kid on the Crammed block

The multi-talented artist is a central figure in the alternative music scene in Argentina, where he's considered as a modern-day Renaissance man:
Axel Krygier has ran the gamut from playing in rock bands, writing scores for acclaimed playwrights, and being a forerunner of the digital cumbia scene… After two acclaimed albums in his own country, "Pesebre" — out on Crammed in September — will be his first international release.

"Axel Krygier's unique sound —a mash-up of jazz, rock, electronica, cumbia, Argentinian folklore and experimental music — makes it easy to succumb to such tempting descriptions as "Atahualpa Yupanqui meets Thelonious Monk, performed by Frank Zappa and remixed by Diplo", but the brush that this composer paints with is even broader than that" (Global Rhythm, US)

ALLÀ at Pitchfork Music Festival

They've been quiet since their rocking covers mini-album "Digs" last year, but Mexican-American sound voyagers Allà return in impressive style in July with an appearance at the Pitchfork Music Festival in their native Chicago. The band, whose debut album "Es Tiempo" dropped on Crammed in 2008, play on Sunday July 18, alongside acts including Pavement, Big Boi, Major Lazer and Lightning Bolt.